Edible Container Garden

We packed an assortment of edible flowers, veggies and herbs into a rectangular terra-cotta pot. All require at least six hours daily of full sun.

You can use a slow-release fertilizer every two weeks and make sure that the pot is kept watered, but well-drained. To keep your potted herbs looking their best, snip and use them regularly. The cutting promotes bushier, fuller-looking growth.

The cabbage doesn't have enough room in this container to produce a head, but its pretty red leaves add color to the mix. Using a larger container and allowing more space between each plant will encourage more growth.

Also, the 'Jack Be Little' pumpkins, which grow only 2 inches high and 3 inches across, may not set fruit in this small a container, but you can use use the blossoms for cooking.

Look for small-space varieties such as 'Jingle Bells' peppers or 'Patio Hybrid' tomatoes. Add a wood trellis or other element such as bamboo arches to provide support for your tomato.

Once the growing season ends you can transplant the herbs and perennials into your garden. Or replant the herbs in pots and move them to a sunny spot indoors to sustain you through the winter.

Plant List

1. Golden oregano 'Aureum'

2. Thyme 'Silver Posy'

3. Strawberry (one plant)

4. Cabbage 'Red Acre'

5. Tomato 'Patio Hybrid'

6. Dianthus 'Strawberry Parfait'

7. Sage 'Tricolor'

8. Lemon geranium

9. Pansy 'Bingo Blue With Blotch'

10. Pumpkin 'Jack Be Little'

11. Rosemary

12. Pepper 'Jingle Bells'

13. Basil 'Dark Opal'

Quick Tip

You can use the dianthus and pansies in this container as edible garnishes or in salads. Other great edible flowers include nasturtiums, violas, calendulas, borage, daylilies and chive flowers. For the best flavor use only the petals of most flowers; exceptions include nasturtiums, pansies and violas.

Be sure none of the flowers you want to eat have been exposed to chemicals. If you buy bedding plants be sure to pinch off all blooming flowers first, and rinse off the root ball before planting. If you grow plants from seed don't apply any chemicals to them if you want to eat them.